Civil Reporting Legislation (RoI)

Section 14, Children First Act, 2015

Section 14

(1) Subject to subsections (3), (4), (5), (6) and (7), where a mandated person knows, believes or has reasonable grounds to suspect, on the basis of information that he or she has received, acquired or becomes aware of in the course of his or her employment or profession as such a mandated person, that a child—

(a) has been harmed,

(b) is being harmed, or

(c) is at risk of being harmed,

he or she shall, as soon as practicable, report that knowledge, belief or suspicion, as the case may be, to the Agency.

(2) Where a child believes that he or she—

(a) has been harmed,

(b) is being harmed, or

(c) is at risk of being harmed,

and discloses that belief to a mandated person in the course of the mandated person’s employment or profession as such a person, the mandated person shall, subject to subsections (5), (6) and (7), as soon as practicable, report that disclosure to the Agency.

(3) A mandated person shall not be required to make a report to the Agency under subsection (1) where—

(a) he or she knows or believes that—

(i) a child who is aged 15 years or more but less than 17 years is engaged in sexual activity, and

(ii) the other party to the sexual activity concerned is not more than 2 years older than the child concerned,

(b) he or she knows or believes that—

(i) there is no material difference in capacity or maturity between the parties engaged in the sexual activity concerned, and

(ii) the relationship between the parties engaged in the sexual activity concerned is not intimidatory or exploitative of either party,

(c) he or she is satisfied that subsection (2) does not apply, and

(d) the child concerned has made known to the mandated person his or her view that the activity, or information relating to it, should not be disclosed to the Agency and the mandated person relied upon that view.

(4) A mandated person shall not be required to make a report to the Agency under subsection (1) where the sole basis for the mandated person’s knowledge, belief or suspicion is as a result of information he or she has acquired, received or become aware of—

(a) from—

(i) another mandated person, or

(ii) a person, other than a mandated person, who has reported jointly with a mandated person pursuant to subsection (6)(b),

that a report has been made to the Agency in respect of the child concerned by that other person,

(b) pursuant to his or her role, as a member of staff of the Agency, in carrying out an assessment as to whether a child who is the subject of a report or any other child has been, is being or is at risk of being harmed, or

(c) pursuant to his or her role in assisting the Agency with an assessment as to whether a child who is the subject of a report or any other child has been, is being or is at risk of being harmed.

(5) Subsections (1) and (2) apply only to information that a mandated person acquires, receives or becomes aware of after the commencement of this section irrespective of whether the harm concerned occurred before or after that commencement.

(6) Subject to subsection (7), a report under subsection (1) or (2) shall be made by the completion of such form as shall be specified for that purpose by the Agency (in this Act referred to as a “mandated report form”) and may be made by the mandated person—

(a) himself or herself, or

(b) jointly with one or more than one other person, irrespective of whether or not the other person is a mandated person.

(7) Where a mandated person acting in the course of his or her employment or profession knows, believes or has reasonable grounds to suspect that a child may be at risk of immediate harm and should be removed to a place of safety, he or she may make a report to the Agency under subsection (1) or (2) other than by means of a mandated report form.

(8) Where a mandated person makes a report under subsection (7), he or she shall in addition, complete a mandated report form as soon as may be but in any event not later than 3 days after the making of the first-mentioned report.

(9) Any of the following matters may be prescribed:

(a) the procedures that are to apply to a mandated person making a report under this section;

(b) the making of a report by a mandated person jointly with one or more than one other person under this section.

(10) The Agency shall make a mandated report form available in such form and manner (including on the internet) as the Agency considers appropriate.

(11) The obligations imposed on a mandated person under this section are in addition to, and not in substitution for, any other obligation that the person has to disclose information to the Agency (whether or not in his or her capacity as a mandated person), but, subject to subsection (8), this section shall not require the mandated person to disclose that information to the Agency more than once.

(12) Nothing in this section shall operate to affect any other obligation that a person has to disclose information to a member of An Garda Síochána under the Criminal Justice (Withholding of Information on Offences against Children and Vulnerable Persons) Act 2012 or to any other person by or under any other enactment or rule of law.

Criminal Justice (Withholding of Information on Offences against Children and Vulnerable Persons) Act 2012

Offences

Section 1.— (1) In this [Withholding of Information] Act—

“arrestable offence” has the meaning it has in section 2 of the Criminal Law Act 1997

“Schedule 1 offence” means an offence that is an arrestable offence and is specified in Schedule 1

Section 2.— (1) Subject to this section, a person shall be guilty of an offence if—

(a) he or she knows or believes that an offence, that is a Schedule 1 offence, has been committed by another person against a child, and

(b) he or she has information which he or she knows or believes might be of material assistance in securing the apprehension, prosecution or conviction of that other person for that offence,

and fails without reasonable excuse to disclose that information as soon as it is practicable to do so to a member of the Garda Síochána.

Schedule 1 offence

Offences against children for purposes of offence under section 2:

1. Murder.

2. Manslaughter.

3. Common law offence of false imprisonment.

4. Rape.

5. Rape under section 4 of the Criminal Law (Rape) (Amendment) Act 1990 .

6. Sexual assault. 

7. Aggravated sexual assault within the meaning of section 3 of the Criminal Law (Rape) (Amendment) Act 1990 .

8. An offence under section 1 of the Punishment of Incest Act 1908 (incest by males).

9. An offence under section 2 of the Punishment of Incest Act 1908 (incest by females of or over 17 years of age).

10. An offence under section 6 (1) of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 1993.

11. An offence under section 2 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2006 (defilement of child under 15 years of age).

12. An offence under section 3 of the Criminal Law (Sexual Offences) Act 2006 (defilement of child under the age of 17 years).

13. An offence under either of the following provisions of the Child Trafficking and Pornography Act 1998 —

(a) section 3 (child trafficking and taking, etc., child for sexual exploitation),

(b) section 4 (allowing child to be used for child pornography).

14. An offence under section 2 of the Sexual Offences (Jurisdiction) Act 1996 insofar as it relates to an offence specified in the Schedule to that Act that is also specified in this Schedule.

15. An offence under any of the following provisions of the Criminal Law (Human Trafficking) Act 2008 —

(a) section 2 (trafficking, etc., of children),

(b) section 5 insofar as it relates to a child who has been trafficked for the purpose of his or her exploitation (soliciting or importuning for purposes of prostitution of trafficked person),

(c) section 7 insofar as it relates to an offence under section 2 of that Act or section 3 (other than subsections (2A) and (2B)) of the Child Trafficking and Pornography Act 1998 .

16. An offence under section 249 of the Children Act 2001 (causing or encouraging sexual offence upon a child).

17. An offence under section 176 of the Criminal Justice Act 2006 (reckless endangerment of children).

18. An offence under any of the following provisions of the Non-Fatal Offences against the Person Act 1997 —

(a) section 3 (assault causing harm),

(b) section 4 (causing serious harm),

(c) section 5 (threats to kill or cause serious harm),

(d) section 13 (endangerment),

(e) section 15 (false imprisonment),

(f) section 16 (abduction of child by parent, etc.),

(g) section 17 (abduction of child by other persons).

19. An offence under section 246 of the Children Act 2001 (cruelty to children).

20. An offence under any of the following provisions of the Criminal Justice (Female Genital Mutilation) Act 2012 —

(a) section 2 (offences of female genital mutilation, etc.),

(b) section 3 (offence of removal from State for purpose of female genital mutilation),

(c) section 4 (acts, etc., done outside State).

Arrestable offence (Criminal Law Act, 1997)

Section 2.—(1) In this Act, and in any amendment made by this Act in any other enactment—

“arrestable offence” means an offence for which a person of full capacity and not previously convicted may, under or by virtue of any enactment, be punished by imprisonment for a term of five years or by a more severe penalty and includes an attempt to commit any such offence.